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Military
SSGT Reuben F. Baganz Ball Turret Gunner William Waldron Crew 487th BG - 836th BS KIA 24 December 1944
William J. Waldron Crew at the completion of B-17 crew training at Ardmore, Oklahoma, about September 1944. B-17G-45-VE #44-8055 - 222nd Base Unit - Ardmore AAF Back row (L to R): William J. Waldron (pilot), Oscar F. Eshleman (copilot), Joseph S. Shuster (navigator), and Russell C. Neu (bombardier) Front row (L to R): Benedict A. Andrew (engineer-top turret gunner), George J. Ferenchak (radio operator), Eugene S. Isley (armorer-waist gunner), Charles K. Brokke (waist gunner), Reuben F. Baganz (ball turret gunner), and James P. Naughton (tail gunner). The crew deployed to England and was assigned to the 836th Bomb Squadron of the 487th Bomb Group, at Army Air Forces Station 137 near the village of Lavenham, Suffolk, England on 19 October 1944. Charles Brokke was taken off the crew after arrival at Lavenham. The crew flew with only waist gunner, as was the custom at that time. The crew was shot down near Liege, Belgium on December 24, 1944. Eshleman, Shuster, Andrew, Ferenchak, Baganz, and Naughton were killed in action. Waldron, Neu, and Isley survived.
Killed in Action (KIA) when B-17G #43-38926 'Weary Willy' piloted by Lieutenant William J. Waldron was attacked by fighters on 24 Dec 1944.
Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 487th Bomb Group
On 24 Dec 1944, B-17G #43-38926 'Weary Willy' piloted by Lieutenant William J. Waldron was attacked by fighters and crashed in Belgium near where a tank battle raged. Waldron and Russell Neu survived and returned.
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Group
The 487th Bomb Group began operations as preparations for D-Day were reaching their crescendo and played their part by bombing airfields in northern France. Like the 486th Bomb Group, the 487th switched to B-17 Flying Fortress for missions from 1...
Squadron
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Lincoln 12/10/44; Grenier 22/10/44; Assigned 836BS/487BG Lavenham 2/12/44; Missing in Action Darmstadt 24/12/44 with ?; mid air coll with FW 190 en route target; crashed Belgium; Missing Air Crew Report 11675.
24 December 1944
1. Decision.
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Military site : airfield
Lavenham was built as a standard USAAF bomber airfield, with fifty hardstandings, T2 hangars and 2,000 and 1,400 feet runways. John Laing and Son Ltd. carried out the work in 1943, and the airfield opened in April 1944. The 487th Bomb Group occupied...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Kewaunee, WI 54216, USA | 1 August 1925 |
| Lived in | Brodhead, WI 53520, USA | 1940 |
| Lived in | Milwaukee, WI, USA | 1942 |
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2902 North 27th Street |
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| Died | Rouvreux, 4140 Sprimont, Belgium | 24 December 1944 |
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On December 24, 1944, the 8th Air Force launched mission #760, the largest aerial mission of the war, which involved more than 2000 heavy bombers. The mission was to bomb German airfields and supply lines, to stem the German offensive in the Ardennes known as the Battle of the Bulge. The 487th Bomb Group led the entire 8th Air Force that day. Lt Waldron's crew flew B-17G 43-38926 in the number nine position in the Low Squadron of the 487th Bomb Group formation. The Group's target was the airfield at Babenhausen, Germany, but the formation was attacked by German fighters before reaching the target. S/Sgt Baganz and five of his crew mates were killed in action when their aircraft was shot down by German fighters south of Liege, Belgium. Three men were blown clear and survived when the aircraft exploded in the air. The B-17 crashed near Rouvreux, Belgium, about 15 miles south of Liege |
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| Buried | Springfield, IL, USA | 1949 |
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Camp Butler National Cemetery |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 05 August 2016 17:55:08 | 466thHistorian | Changes to service number, events, person associations, place associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=2550257 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:22:18 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / The History of the 487th BG Roll of Honor pp. 302-5 and account pp 197-8 MACR 11675 / http://www.487thbg.org/Photos/WaldronCrew.shtml , |
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